Wednesday, November 01, 2017

Assault Breacher Vehicle tested aboard a Landing Craft Utility...

via Janes.

After years of successfully operating its Assault Breacher Vehicle (ABV) in overseas conflicts, the US Marine Corps (USMC) has found a way to fit the mine-clearing modified tanks on Landing Craft Utility (LCU) vessels.

The USMC tested the revamped ABVs during the last week of October as it stormed beaches and practised other amphibious operations during its annual Bold Alligator 2017 exercise along the Atlantic Ocean coast of North Carolina.

“Now we can offload [from the LCU], drop the front-end equipment and start plowing,” Lieutenant Oscar Machado told Jane’s during a break in the exercise. “That’s what we’ve been trying out for Bold Alligator, onloads and offloads with the LCU – the first time we’ve used it like this.

I assumed that the ABV had been tested for shipboard capability long ago but I guess its better late than never. This has to be the new bastard vehicle of the Marine Corps. YOU NEVER hear anyone with stars even mentioning the thing! Will it stay in the active force, to the Reserves or worse to storage?